2023 Patrick Mannelly Award Watch List Announced

Posted on July 31, 2023 by longsnap

The Watch List for the Patrick Mannelly Award, given annually to the snapper deemed to be the best from all FBS teams, was announced this afternoon. This is the 5th year for this prestigious Award.

There are 25 long snappers on this initial list and other snappers will be under careful consideration this college football season.

Ten semi-finalists will be announced on November 13, 2023 and those names will be narrowed to three on November 27, 2023.

Three finalists will be invited to a live ceremony on December 9, 2023 in Lake Bluff, Illinois where the Award will be presented. The Award benefits Bernie’s Book Bank, a non-profit organization located in Lake Bluff and is being presented by Zebra again this year.

Below is the Watch List.

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Two Long Snappers Placed on Injured Reserve

Posted on July 26, 2023 by longsnap

Every NFL team has started training camp and two teams immediately made changes at the snapping position.

Nick Moore of the Ravens will miss the season with a torn achilles suffered during an off-season workout and rookie Matt Hembrough of the Cardinals was also placed on injured reserve with a back injury.

The Ravens signed veteran Tyler Ott after also working out Ryan Langan and Shane Griffin. Langan and Griffin both snapped in the USFL this season.

The Cardinals signed Jack Coco, who spent last season snapping for the Packers. The Cardinals also worked out another USFL snapper, Jordan Ober, before signing Coco.

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NFL Long Snapping Landscape as Training Camps Open

Posted on July 18, 2023 by longsnap

A few NFL teams open training camp today with their rookies reporting. With camps opening, seven NFL teams have two snappers on the roster.

The Steelers became the latest team to add a snapper after signing Rex Sunahara late last month. Sunahara has previous experience with Pittsburgh as a practice squad member at the end of the 2021 season.

The other teams that have two snappers heading into training camp are the Cardinals, Lions, Packers, Patriots, Giants and Buccaneers.

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Recent Snapping Transactions During OTAs

Posted on June 10, 2023 by longsnap

Organized team activities conclude next week in the NFL and two teams have tinkered with the snapping position.

The Cardinal re-signed veteran Aaron Brewer. Brewer’s season was cut short in December last season but he is now recovered.

With the addition of Brewer, the Cardinals waived Joe Fortunato who signed a reserve/future contract in January. Rookie free agent Matt Hembrough is also on the Arizona roster.

The Steelers have tried out a number of snappers and could add one for training camp. Antonio Ortiz, Jack Coco, Robert Soderholm, Rex Sunahara and Scott Meyer all worked out for Pittsburgh the last few weeks.

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NFL Long Snapping Landscape after Mini-Camps

Posted on May 16, 2023 by longsnap

With each team conducting rookie mini-camp the past two weekends, the long snapping landscape in the NFL is becoming a bit more clear.

First, the Jets signed veteran Thomas Hennessy to a new four-year contract earlier this month. Hennessy would have been an unrestricted free agent after this upcoming NFL season.

With respect to the NFL Draft, a total of six snappers signed undrafted free agent contracts. One, Broughton Hatcher from Old Dominion, was signed by the Packers after a mini-camp tryout. With his signing, the Packers waived its snapper from last season Jack Coco who was also signed following a tryout. Hatcher will compete with the recently-signed Matt Orzech.

A special mention is also warranted for Nick Boyle, who spent 8 seasons as a tight end with the Ravens and tried out with the Steelers as a long snapper this weekend.

There are also a number of unsigned veteran free agent snappers that may get calls as training camps approach or during the season. They are Josh Harris, Beau Brinkley, Matt Overton, Aaron Brewer, Tyler Ott and Carson Tinker.

Below is a chart summarizing the six snappers who signed contracts and 14 tryouts since the NFL Draft. If any tryouts were missed, please let me know at kevingold@longsnap.com.

2023 Signings/TryoutsDownload

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New Snapping Moves

Posted on May 1, 2023 by longsnap

Three snappers from the 2023 NFL Draft class have earned rookie mini-camp tryouts. The snappers are Brady Weas (Texans), Tommy Zozus (Jaguars) and Jake Hoffman (Chiefs).

Another snapper, Evan Deckers, earned a contract with the Buccaneers and became the fifth one to sign a contract so far.

Decker and the three tryout snappers join the five snappers, shown below, that earned contracts or, in one case, a tryout that were known as of Saturday evening.

With rookie mini-camps occurring this coming weekend and the following weekend, it is possible that more tryouts opportunities are coming.

Chris Stoll (Seahawks)

Alex Ward (Rams)

Matt Hembrough (Cardinals)

Cam Lyons (Giants)

Robert Soderholm (Seahawks-Tryout)

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Long Snapping Update after the NFL Draft

Posted on April 29, 2023 by longsnap

No long snapper was selected in the NFL Draft but at least a few have signed contracts or earned a tryout after the Draft.

While there may be more signings and tryouts announced over the next few days, here is what I have learned this evening, although not all are confirmed.

Chris Stoll (Seahawks)

Alex Ward (Rams)

Matt Hembrough (Cardinals)

Cam Lyons (Giants)

Robert Soderholm (Seahawks-Tryout)

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Long Snapping Update Heading into the Draft

Posted on April 26, 2023 by longsnap

The NFL Draft gets started tomorrow but Saturday is the key day for long snappers. While it is unclear if a long snapper will be selected this year, the Rams and Seahawks do not have a snapper under contract, making it more likely that one or two snappers are chosen.

In recent weeks, the Cowboys addressed their snapping need by signing former Raider Trent Sieg. The Rams conducted a recent tryout with Tyler Ott, Brady Sorenson and Logan Klusman but none were signed. Scott Daly signed his exclusive rights contract with the Lions and he will compete with Jake McQuaide.

Stay tuned to Longsnap.com Saturday evening for all the long snapping updates from the Draft.

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2023 USFL Long Snappers

Posted on April 22, 2023 by longsnap

The reboot of the USFL is back for a second season and regular season games resumed last week. With eight teams, the USFL provides opportunities for long snappers to get more exposure and game file.

Two USFL snappers from last season, Mitchell Fraboni and Tucker Addington, each made their NFL debuts last year.

Below are the long snappers for each USFL team for 2023:

Birmingham Ryan Langan

Houston Ross Reiter

Memphis Ryan DiSalvo

Michigan Shane Griffin

New Jersey Jordan Ober

New Orleans Turner Bernard

Philadelphia Ryan Navarro

Pittsburgh Riley Lovingood

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Major Moves During Free Agency for Long Snappers

Posted on March 20, 2023 by longsnap

Veteran free agency is entering its second week and, while snappers rarely switch teams, that is not the case this year.

First, Joe Cardona signed a new four-year deal to remain in New England and Andrew DePaola signed a new three-year deal in Minnesota. Another veteran, Casey Kreiter, did a one-year deal to remain a Giant and Nick Moore inked a new two-year deal with the Ravens.

Three snappers are changing teams. Former Rams snapper Matt Orzech signed a three-year deal with the Packers. Jacob Bobenmoyer, who was not tendered as a restricted free agent by the Broncos, instead signed a three-year deal with the Raiders. After signing Bobenmoyer, the Raiders released Trent Sieg who is free to sign elsewhere. Finally, former Cowboys snapper Jake McQuaide had tryout with the Lions and signed to a one-year deal. The Lions also have Scott Daly on the roster, who was tendered as an exclusive rights free agent, but not yet signed his contract.

Below are the six unsigned snappers as of this morning:

UNRESTRICTED (6)

Aaron Brewer (Cardinals)

Beau Brinkley (Falcons)

Clark Harris (Bengals)

Tyler Ott (Seahawks)

Matt Overton (Cowboys)

Carson Tinker (Seahawks)

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